KNOCKOUT GAME

The "KNOCKOUT" style of play is the fastest and easiest to learn and the most popular. It can be played ANYWHERE. It is a great first step into the SAYWORD!®️ concept. The fast pace makes it great for game night.

DIFFICULTY LEVEL: Beginner

OBJECT: Collect points by outlasting your opponents. (2 or more players)

SETUP & GAME PLAY:

1. Place the deck facing down among all players. 
2. The first player plucks a card, reads it out loud, and places it face up next to the deck. 
3. The player then says, "sayword!" to start the hand. 
4. The next player to the left says a word that contains the root form from the drawn card. For example, if the card drawn is "CAP, CEP, CIP, CUP", the player can say words such as: reCUPerate, CAPture, reCIPient, acCEPt, etc. Game play continues to the left with each player saying a word based on the root. 
5. If a player cannot come up with a word in 20 seconds, they are eliminated from that hand. Click here to use our official knockout timer.
6. If a player says an invalid word they are eliminated. Invalid words include correct spellings with incorrect origins, proper nouns, multi-word phrases, and repeat answers from that hand/card.
7. The hand continues until there is one player remaining who then becomes the winner.  The winner says, "That's my word!" and keeps the card until the end of the round. 
8. The winner draws the next card to start the next hand. 

USE THE FOLLOWING PHRASES AND ACTIONS TO PLAY THE GAME:

SAY: "SAYWORD!" when dealing a new card from the deck.

DO: Pluck a card from the deck. Place it facing up on the table. Then the player to the left says a word based upon the root that appears on the card.

SAY: "THAT'S MY WORD!" if you have eliminated all other players.

DO: Pick up the card and keep it until the end of the round.

SAY: "THAT'S NOT A WORD!" to challenge a word said by an opponent.

DO: Confirm the word and origin (etymology) using one of our approved dictionaries. If the word is not valid, the player who has lost the challenge is eliminated from that round and must let the challenger take one of their cards. If the word is valid, the challenger must give a card to the player they challenged and sit out for that round.

SAY: "THAT'S THE LAST WORD!" if you are the first to collect your tenth card.

DO: Place the used cards to the side and then start the next round.

SAY: "THAT'S YOUR WORD!" if there are two players remaining and you can't think of a word.

DO: Forfeit your turn and surrender the card to the other player.

SCORING & WINNING THE GAME: Hands continue until one player has collected 10 cards and won the round. Players also have the option to play for points. In this variation, players keep count of the points from the cards they have collected during the round. Players can choose to play up to 50 points (novice), 100 points (standard), or 250 points (master). 

WILD CARDS: When playing for the most cards, wild cards multiply the card value of the card it precedes. If a 2X wild card is drawn, the next card is worth 2 cards. If a 3X is drawn, the next card is worth 3 cards. When playing for points, the wild card is used as a point multiplier for the second card. For example, if a 2X wild card is drawn, and a root card worth 3 points is drawn second, the new point value for that card is 6 points. Make sure to keep the wild card and the additional card together to count the score at the end of the game.

STRATEGIES:

HOARDING: To more easily outlast your opponents, start by saying the more obvious words first. Save your complex or more obscure words for when most of the competition has been eliminated. Then come out with your heavy hitters!

CONJUGATION: Exhaust all the prefixes and suffixes that a word can have. One word can sometimes take on as many as 10 variations. Adding "S", "ED", or "ING" are easy to think of but be careful, these suffixes can't be added to every word! Sometimes the tense can change the form of a word. For example, LEAD in the past tense becomes LED. This would be a valid play.

TIME PRESSURING: Time to come up with an answer is limited. The faster you answer the less time your opponent has to think of their next word. Answering quickly is a great intimidation tactic and forces people out of the round quickly.

VARIATIONS:

PLAYING FOR POINTS: Use the point value on the card to determine a winner. Players can choose to play up to 50 points (novice), 100 points (standard), or 250 points (master). 

PLAYING IN TEAMS: Divide players into two teams. One representative for each team compete for a card, The winner wins those points for their team. All other standard rules apply. If a table is available, the two teams move to either side of a table. While competing for the card, they slide the card to their side of the table are giving a valid answer. The opposing team must give a valid answer to bring the card back over to their side. The card starts in the middle of the table.

FREE PLAY: This is an easier style of play that allows players under 8 years old to join in. All basic rules apply, but the answers are only required to have accurate spelling. No connection to the definition is required.

ADULTS ONLY: When a player is eliminated, come up with a penalty of your choice! House rules rule.